Rowan Walker (born 12 January 1970 in

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

) is an Australian distance athlete, twice holding the title of Australian Marathon Champion.

Race career

Walker's first

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

was in 2000 when he entered

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

’s Host City Marathon, a trial event prior to the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

. In 2007, he claimed his first marathon title by winning the

Melbourne Marathon The Melbourne Marathon has been held annually since 1978. The 42.195 km run over the traditional marathon distance is the main race within the annual Melbourne Marathon Festival. The race celebrated its 30th birthday in 2007 with a new cours ...

in a time of 2:19:16. During this period he was coached by

Lee Troop Lee Joseph Troop (born 22 March 1973) is an Olympic marathon runner from Geelong, Victoria, Australia. He started out as a long-distance track runner and he represented Australia in the 5000 m at the 1998 Commonwealth Games and attended hi ...

. In 2010, the

Gold Coast Marathon The Gold Coast Marathon is an annual road marathon on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, first held in 1979. Marketed as "Australia's premier road race", the marathon is the only race in Australia to hold World Athletics Label status. ...

simultaneously decided the men's and women's Australian Marathon Champions. As the first Australian athlete to finish, Walker thus claimed the title of Australian Marathon Champion. In 2014, the Gold Coast Marathon again served as the Australian Marathon Championship, and Walker was once more the first Australian home, in 11th place overall, to take the title. From 2008 to 2017, the

Oceania Marathon and Half Marathon Championships The Oceania Marathon and Half Marathon Championships are an annual Road running competition organized by the Oceania Athletics Association (OAA) for athletes representing the countries of its member associations. They were established in 2008. Ra ...

were also decided at the Gold Coast Marathon, with Walker claiming a top three position in the Oceania marathon championship for eight consecutive years from 2008. At the 2010 Melbourne Marathon, Walker completed a personal best marathon time of 2:18:01, at the age of 40. This set a race record for the men's 40–44 age group. Walker has also placed first in the

Auckland Marathon The Barfoot & Thompson Auckland Marathon and Half Marathon is an annual running event held in Auckland, New Zealand. The event is held in October or early November of each year, which is during the spring in New Zealand. The main feature of the ...

(2012) and

Canberra Marathon The Canberra Times Marathon Festival is an annual marathon () held in the city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The marathon was established in 1976 and is the oldest city marathon in Australia. The marathon was initially held o ...

(2011, 2013, 2015 and 2016). Walker has participated in a number of

ultramarathon An ultramarathon, also called ultra distance or ultra running, is any footrace longer than the traditional marathon length of . Various distances are raced competitively, from the shortest common ultramarathon of to over . 50k and 100k are bot ...

events, including the

Kepler Challenge The Kepler Challenge Mountain Run is the premier mountain running event in New Zealand and follows the 60 km Kepler Track through the Fiordland National Park. It has been held annually since 1988, and draws competitors from throughout New Zea ...

. In 2012, Walker was the first solo runner home in the inaugural Surf Coast Century, a 100 km ultramarathon set around

Anglesea, Victoria Anglesea is a town in Victoria, Australia. It is located on the Great Ocean Road in the Surf Coast Shire local government area. In the , Anglesea had a population of 2,545 people. Originally known as Swampy Creek, the area's name was changed t ...

. He has also competed in the Duathlon World Championships and the

Ironman Australia The Ironman Australia is a yearly triathlon in May covering the Ironman distance (3.8 km swimming, 180 km cycling and 42.195 km running) on the East Coast of Australia. The event has been held in Port Macquarie, New South Wales, NSW since 2006 a ...

event in Port Macquarie.

References

External links

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Interview with Rowan Walker: The real marathon man
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Rowan Living people 1970 births Australian male marathon runners Sportspeople from Hobart Australian male long-distance runners 21st-century Australian people Australian Athletics Championships winners